Criss Cross
by TheTenderFury
Summary: The interlude of the journey, Mugen's tattoos, and Fuu's curiosity. It all adds up on this night.


I don't own Samurai Champloo. If I did there would have been a lot more Mugen and Fuu moments. Also I'm not really sure where this plot bunny came from. It just kind of showed up so I figured what could it hurt.

Criss- Cross

Chapter 1: Passion

* * *

><p>Fuu stared out the window of the small hut that Jin, Mugen, and herself had stumble over that day and had decided that that would be camp for the night. Jin had gone to take care of something in the town near that hut and with that had left the Fuu and Mugen to fend for themselves for now.<p>

At this time Fuu found herself staring out the window at the stars, wondering about their journey. Mugen was asleep; tried from the walking around as he had also gotten into another squeamish. Fuu now bored with the stars turned her attention to the man sleeping a few feet away from her.

He didn't look like the rude, nasty, arrogant, skirt chasing bastard in his sleep that he was awake. In fact, Mugen looked like a little kid, a scruffy kid, but a kid nonetheless.

It was the rest of him that betrayed that thought, Fuu thought staring at Mugen and the contours of his body. His toned stomach, arms, and legs with strong, lanky wrist and ankles.

Still today, nothing of that nature was catching Fuu's attention. No, instead it was the teal lines that encircled his wrists and ankles that branded him like shackles, which ironically enough was where he got them, in a prison somewhere.

Fuu moved closer to Mugen, straightening her kimono as she went, looking down at the man in question. It was funny; really, Mugen wasn't _that _much older than Fuu herself. Maybe three, four years and already he had done so much more than her. Was a pirate, had women, mastered swordplay in some sense, was in prison, and God knows what else. Fuu was only fifteen but still in three years she couldn't see herself doing anything like Mugen did.

The pathetic part was Fuu didn't know if that was a good thing or not.

Shutting the door on the idea Fuu lifted her hand in wonder, staring at the lines on his wrists and very gently she took a finger and lightly traced the line. It was strange, it looked like paint but even if she wasn't pressing into his skin she knew that it wasn't going to disturb anything. It was ink faded into his skin, marking him as different. Fuu didn't even want to think if Mugen had wanted them or if he had to be held down. Knowing Mugen he fought like an animal if it was the latter.

Fuu continued her exploration on his wrist, trying to be careful and delicate as to not wake Mugen up and have to explain just what she was doing. Soon her endeavor was over and she was about to get up only to have a hand clasp her hand in a vice like grip. Without warning, Fuu soon found herself on her back, Mugen straddling her hips as he gripped her wrist in his hands, amber eyes staring down at the flushed girl.

"Just what the hell were you doing," Mugen asked, eyebrow quirked at the girl.

Fuu didn't say anything for a minute but turned her head to look at Mugen's wrists beside her and the lines that marked them. Mugen following her gaze and didn't say anything, not sure where this was going.

"Did it hurt," Fuu asked quietly, still staring at the lines in disturbing fascination.

Mugen didn't say anything for a minute, not sure how to answer without scaring this girl. Truth was that that day lived forever in Mugen's memory, not the pain or anything that went with, just the day that he was permanently marked.

No, Fuu was never to know that.

"I don't remember, "Mugen answered scoffing a little, typical Mugen behavior, just to throw her off. What he didn't count on was Fuu flinching slightly at the answer. Fuu turned her head to look at Mugen's face and at his eyes.

"Liar," Fuu said.

Mugen let go to her wrist entirely, surprised that she had seen that, seen right through the lie. Fuu grabbed one of his wrists and brought it closer to her face for inspection, almost as if to see the red, swelled skin under the ink from that day.

Mugen moved off her and for an instant, just for a flash, Mugen didn't see the fifteen, almost sixteen year old that he saw day in and day out. No, instead he saw the beautiful woman she was going to be. Maybe it was in that moment that Mugen realized that she wasn't just a piece of tail like other women were. Somehow this whiny, clumsy, and flat- chested girl was much more than that.

Fuu was so distracted by the lines that she almost missed the animalistic groan that came from Mugen and the pull of her body from the floor to him, only to feel his lips. They shaped themselves to hers, pulling at her lower lip with his teeth. Fuu was thrown off for a moment but was able to move with against him, thinking that this was essentially her first true kiss. Mugen pulled her lips with his teeth, running his tongue over it and finally opening her mouth and battling for dominance. Mugen smirk as he felt Fuu come out to play, fighting against him but Mugen won this battle and was given free reign. Running out of air and feeling that this could go further then she wanted, Fuu felt she should break the kiss.

So imagine her surprise when Mugen did it for her. Mugen looked down at her in a mix of lust, wonder, and an emotion that Fuu couldn't figure out. It was then that Fuu realized that her back met the floor of the hut all over again and that Mugen was hovering over her, lips bruised and red. Fuu felt a flash of feminine pride that she had done that. It might have been nothing new for Mugen, but it meant something to her.

Mugen moved off of her, eyes shielded by the dark, trying not to think about what would have happened if it had gone further. It would have been so easy to take her then and there.

But this was Fuu, the girl that Mugen respect more than anything and may even loved in his very odd way.

With that Mugen swore and left the hut leaving a flushed and heaving Fuu behind, only to have Jin come through the door of the hut a minute later. Meeting a pissed off Mugen on the road and a fluttered Fuu in the hut, Jin was sure what to think. When he asked Fuu what was wrong she said nothing and that she was just tired and a little hot, which wasn't far from the truth.

Jin turned in and as did Fuu.

The difference here was that Jin slept, Fuu didn't. She turned on her side away from the door and waited till she heard Mugen come in.

Fuu kept her breathing even and slow as she listened to Mugen swear and move around as quietly as possible. He wasn't drunk but Fuu could hear the sound of water dripping. He might have gone for a swim or something. With Mugen back Fuu fell asleep, not knowing that Mugen couldn't keep his eyes off her back, as if the answer to their problem was written on her back.

Curling even further in on herself, Fuu closed her eyes, trying desperately not to think about what this could mean tomorrow.

Or more importantly: what this would do to the set up and structure of their motley group.

Fuu heaved a sigh; the last thing she saw in her mind's eye was a flash of amber as she fell asleep.

* * *

><p>AN: Well that was interesting. *In wonder* this has one more chapter and I will be down with this. All of my other stories still are going on, I promise. But I keep getting newer and newer that I want to write about. My priorities are a little scrambled. Anyway.

Leave a review, critique or just say hi!

Later,

TTF


End file.
